The present application relates generally to an improved data processing apparatus and method and more specifically to mechanisms for managing interconnect electromigration effects.
Electromigration (EM) is a transport of material caused by a gradual movement of the ions in a conductor due to a momentum transfer between conducting electrons and diffusing metal atoms. The effect of EM is important in applications where high direct current densities are used, such as in microelectronics and related structures. As a structure size in electronics decreases, such as integrated circuits (ICs), the practical significance of the EM effect increases.